Robert Taylor Ripley, MD

Dr. R. Taylor Ripley, is a nationally recognized, board-certified thoracic surgeon and expert in thoracic surgical oncology specializing in treatment of mesothelioma. In addition to mesothelioma, he practices all facets of general thoracic surgery including infectious lung disease and benign esophageal diseases as well as endobronchial, multidisciplinary management of patients with lung, esophageal, thymic, and other thoracic malignancies. and endoscopic interventions. Dr. Ripley’s focus on mesothelioma and thoracic oncology extends back over ten years from his studies as a thoracic oncology fellow at the NCI. Dr. Ripley also specializes in robotic surgery to provide minimally invasive approaches to thoracic diseases, for which he will team up with our other robotic thoracic surgeons, Drs. Bryan Burt and Shawn Groth. Dr. Ripley was an associate professor of surgery in the Thoracic and Oncologic Surgery Branch of the National Cancer Institute (NCI). While at the NIH, Dr. Ripley was awarded the NCI Director’s Innovation Award for targeting specific p53-mutations for the treatment of esophageal adenocarcinoma. He established the Foregut Team at the NIH Clinical Center for the management of patients with esophageal cancer. Additionally, he has been developing a novel assessment of thoracic cancers by profiling mitochondrial pathways, which he will continue with us. Dr. Ripley has lectured nationally and published extensively on his work in the field of thoracic oncology and tumor metabolism. Prior to his faculty appointment at the NCI, Dr. Ripley trained extensively in the care of patients with mesothelioma under world-renowned surgeons during his fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. Prior to that, Dr. Ripley served his general surgery residency at the University of Colorado, and received his MD degree from Vanderbilt University. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Baylor College of Medicine General Thoracic Surgery Clinic is offering telemedicine clinic visits. To schedule, please call the main line at 713-798-6376.